Senate Ratifies Weapons Treaty,
Sets the Stage for Future Issues

By

Thomas E. Ricks Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal

Updated April 25, 1997 12:01 a.m. ET

WASHINGTON -- The Senate approved a controversial treaty on chemical weapons, giving the Clinton administration a major foreign-policy victory and possibly clearing the way for movement on other arms-control treaties and on federal budget negotiations.

The treaty, which bans the production of chemical weapons and requires the destruction of existing stocks, was passed by a vote of 74-26. Approval required two-thirds of the Senate, or...